PVH wins award for work in Ethiopia

brett mathews | 13th September 2018

NEW YORK – PVH Corp, which owns the Tommy Hilfiger and Calvin Klein brands, has won a prodigious award for corporate excellence for its work in developing the Ethiopian textile value chain. The company has been operating at Ethiopia’s vast Hawassa Industrial Park since 2014 where it is an anchor tenant. The park is expected to result collectively in 60,000 jobs within a few years, although growth has not been as rapid as some had forecast as Ethiopia continues to struggle with a serious shortage of foreign currency reserves and is reliant in inward investors for development. The park features a Zero Liquid Discharge (ZLD) effluent treatment facility which recycles over 90 per cent of the wastewater produced in the park.

PVH has been selected as one of two winners of the 2018 US Secretary of State’s Award for Corporate Excellence (ACE), an achievement recognising US firms that uphold high standards of responsible business conduct.

Said Emanuel Chirico, chairman and CEO, PVH Corp: “We are in a unique position to make positive impacts in the places around the world where we work and live. One of those places is Ethiopia, where we set out almost five years ago to create a sustainable, vertically integrated, apparel manufacturing industry.

“Today, we are seeing our vision come to life at the Hawassa Industrial Park. We have focused on protecting the local environment, using sustainable energy and ensuring sufficient supplies of clean water. Creating a safe and inclusive workplace is also a priority, which provides real opportunities for the residents of the surrounding area. We are honoured to receive this award and are proud of the operation we have established there.”

Established in 1999, the annual Secretary of State Award for Corporate Excellence recognises US companies representing American values in their business practices worldwide and contributing to the growth and sustainable development of the local economies in which they work.

“The ultimate goal for PVH’s model industrial park is to provide a better future not only for the workers and their families, but also to inspire responsible industrialization across Ethiopia for the betterment of its entire population and the creation of a new market for U.S. goods,” said a statement from the State Department.